It's like flipping on the light, late at night, and seeing the roaches scurrying across the living room floor: The Evangelical-Christian-Right fanatics are coming out of the woodwork, blighting the lives of all Americans and threatening our freedoms.
So, as a mostly-rational and secular people, we have good reason to be damned scared. Apparently God told Wyoming Republican Gov. Mark Gordon that pharmaceutical abortion should be thrown out the window and that anyone participating in such abortions should be jailed, like any other common criminal.
Wyoming's most recent bills outlawing abortion—and specifically medication abortion—have now been drafted and passed. In a letter to his secretary of state, Gordon declared, "I have acted without bias and after extensive prayer, to allow these bills to become law."
Yes, that's right. It seems that Gordon's god (lower case, because there are so many others) told him to make abortions a crime, no matter how they're accomplished, and to make sure that no woman is left with any notion of choice and free will. If Gordon is informed on Christian scripture, he should understand that free agency is his god's way, and that his own is the devil's plan.
Devout as he may be, surely Gov. Gordon must understand that his reliance on prayer is strictly un-American. Strict separation of church and state is not optional; it's the law. Not all Americans are Christians, and the god he believes in does not represent everyone. For that matter, the number of Americans who identify with any church is rapidly dwindling.
Case in point: If Utah's governor is directed by his god to reinstate the culture of polygamy, does that mean that all the men should be forced to troll the bars for more wives? If a Jewish governor is directed by his/her god to enforce rabbinical law, should all Americans be forced to abide by it? If a Hindu governor is directed by "god" to make cattle off-limits as a food item, should we all be forced to stop eating sirloins and get used to cattle leisurely walking down Main Street? Or, how about a governor receiving an answer to his prayers and declaring swift death to all infidels?
That, of course, is madness, but that's where our country is headed. There are simply too many gods to deal with—which is exactly why religion was to have no place in our governance.
That said, the prohibitions against abortion tend to come from the Christian-centered religions. Most of the others have no specific admonitions about the termination of pregnancies, and many others see the issue as a non-doctrinal matter of personal choice and medical recommendation.
As Americans await a Texas judge's preliminary ruling on whether to force the FDA to withdraw its approval of mifepristone—the first of two drugs used in medical abortions—a solid pro-choice majority is holding its breath. Most abortions today are pharmaceutically induced, so the wrong decision could drive another nail into the coffin of women's rights.
God help us!
The far-right, Evangelical Christian extremists continue to impose their will on everyone else. Sadly, the Roe v. Wade SCOTUS decision opened the floodgates to a wave of powerful new activism. And who made that decision? Two accused rapists (Justices Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh), one religious cultist (Justice Amy Coney-Barrett) and a Roman Catholic-dominated court. In all, six Catholics decided a matter that has serious implications for everybody else—just the kind of problem the U.S. Constitution aimed to avoid.
This isn't the first time that Catholicism has been a concern. There was a time when Americans were even afraid to elect a Catholic president. Look at the 1960 election—Kennedy's deep Catholic roots were a major impediment to his election, showing a broad concern for allowing religion to get in the way of more practical solutions to America's problems.
The scary thing: Wyoming is our neighbor and shares at least a portion of Utah's demographics and history. Stragglers from the great Mormon march to Utah are strewn across a number of states between Nauvoo, Illinois and the valley of the Great Salt Lake, so the concept of "personal revelation"—so touted by the LDS faith—is no stranger there. And that's fine. But don't expect other Americans to follow whatever your god tells you.
With the powerful, growing influence of religious zealots hijacking our nation's legislative actions—apparently trying to realize the non-dream of our country's founders in making the USA a "Christian" nation—more and more legislation is bearing the stamp of a reality that goes on only in the minds of those religious zealots.
The matter of abortion is a serious one, and there's no question that the termination of a pregnancy should be approached with great care and consideration. But, the introduction of a god into the practical considerations of American lives is not, at all, the American way. It's time to rein in the zealots who seek to impose their will on our nation. That is an essential aspect of our nation's founding principles.
The author is a retired novelist, columnist and former Vietnam-era Army assistant public information officer. He resides in Riverton with his wife, Carol, and the beloved ashes of their mongrel dog.
